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Body in the Water (2025) Season 1 Episode 1- A Finding in the Loch
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00:00I
00:30Nestled between the Scottish highlands and lowlands is Loch Lomond.
00:43With a surface area of 27.5 square miles and a depth of 502 feet,
00:50it's the largest inland stretch of water in Great Britain.
00:53And Loch Lomond is a lovely remote location
01:02that thousands and thousands of people enjoy every weekend.
01:08It's also regularly used for training by police divers.
01:11A police diving team must keep up their skills at all times.
01:26And in order to do this, they must train somewhere deep
01:30or somewhere in flowing water, no visibility,
01:33different environments to practice their skills.
01:36You know, the water in Loch Lomond is fairly cold all year round.
01:44As far as the diving team was concerned,
01:46we were in Loch Lomond on a regular basis.
01:49Quite a different variety of locations that we can find,
01:53from deep water to shallow water,
01:56from really, really good clear water to quite poor visibility.
02:00On a cold December morning,
02:09police diving supervisor Jeff Adams
02:12was leading a dive team on a training exercise
02:15near Loch Lomond's Rowerdennen Pier.
02:19This is Rowerdennen, where it all began.
02:24Nothing much has changed from 25 years ago.
02:27It was even colder than it is today.
02:30Snow, rain, high winds.
02:34It was quite a horrible day.
02:36Jeff was on the pier running the operation
02:39as his team entered the icy water.
02:42We were just sending the divers out
02:44to make sure that they covered this large area.
02:48It was purely by accident that the divers were sent to an area
02:51that they suddenly saw these two black bin bags.
02:57Being inquisitive by nature and, if you like, by training,
03:03they went to have a look and see what was in these bags.
03:06The officer found an arm.
03:17He thought initially that his colleagues on shore
03:22were playing a practical joke on him.
03:24He thought it was a mannequin inside a black plastic bag.
03:28Either that or he thought,
03:29maybe this is a test to see if I'm doing my sets properly.
03:31Either way, he came out of the water and held the arm aloft
03:35as if to say, yes, I've found it.
03:40I was quite convinced that there was some kind of practical joke being played.
03:45Very quickly, we realised it wasn't.
03:48The discovery of a severed arm and part of a leg
03:52meant the area was now a crime scene.
03:56Strathclyde police were called in.
03:58I was a detective superintendent.
04:05I was in charge of the Ayrshire area.
04:09It was all very early on the Monday morning.
04:12It was an unusual crime in Scotland
04:16and, in fact, pretty much the UK
04:18for body parts to be turning up
04:21in a local moch.
04:23Once they realised there was a crime scene there,
04:31the surface area immediately around that point
04:34would have been sealed off from anyone else entering it
04:37apart from forensic people
04:39and the people that had to be there to investigate the crime.
04:42You need to make sure that everything is intact and secure
04:47so you'd put the body part into a polythene bag
04:51and make sure that that is sealed up
04:53so that nothing can escape it.
04:55You don't want to lose anything,
04:58skin slothing off or anything else falling off the body.
05:02Once the limbs had been found,
05:04then they would start resorting back to proper search techniques
05:07and search patterns
05:08to start looking for any more evidence
05:10and to look for the rest of the body parts.
05:16With just an arm
05:18and part of a leg to work from,
05:21police turned to missing person records
05:23to shed light on who their victim might be.
05:27Meanwhile,
05:28a specialist water team scoured the lough
05:31using underwater cameras
05:33and sonar equipment.
05:35Sonar,
05:36it's a very crude method.
05:38It can find things.
05:41But what it can't do is say for definite
05:43that there's nothing there.
05:44So, technology-wise,
05:46you really can't beat the aspect of putting a police diver in
05:50to search it properly.
05:59So, recovery of the first two items
06:01would be roughly 15, 20 metres off the corner of the pier as we're looking at it.
06:08We continued the search later on
06:10and found another body part down on this corner of the pier.
06:14Every body of water has a tide of some sort,
06:24but it's too small to measure,
06:26and that's the case of Loch Lomond.
06:28Although it's the largest surface area
06:30of any freshwater body of water
06:32on the UK mainland,
06:33it still doesn't have any measurable tidal flow.
06:38So, most likely that the limbs
06:42were actually put into the water
06:44near the pier.
06:45By the 8th of December,
06:52divers had recovered two hands,
06:54two arms,
06:55two lower legs,
06:56one thigh,
06:57and a foot.
06:58They were maybe of a slightly older male,
07:01but they weren't sure
07:03and that they were searching for further body parts.
07:07And by now,
07:08the search had attracted the attention of the press.
07:16At the time,
07:17the newspaper I was working for,
07:18we got a tip-off about
07:19the police were searching for body parts,
07:22but the assumption was
07:23that this was possibly
07:25some sort of gangland crime-related incident,
07:28that possibly
07:29some criminals
07:31had fallen out
07:32when they'd been murdered
07:33and these body parts
07:34disposed of.
07:40It's extremely difficult
07:42to dismember a body.
07:43You can't do it with knives
07:45that you usually keep
07:46in a kitchen.
07:47Somehow,
07:48there has to be
07:49some level of intention
07:50where they go out
07:52and buy various implements
07:54in order to saw the body
07:56into parts.
07:58police were keeping an open mind.
08:04They also widened the search area.
08:08Once we'd finished,
08:09we realized that,
08:10you know,
08:10we hadn't found
08:11all the body parts
08:12to make up a human being.
08:14In the next phase,
08:15that you're trying to think,
08:16right,
08:16if they're not here,
08:18where are they?
08:19So you then have to look
08:20at any other possible sites
08:23where someone could have access
08:25to presumably a vehicle
08:27and be able to dump things
08:30in the water.
08:41Officers and the police diving team
08:43moved their search
08:43seven miles south
08:45along Loch Lomans shoreline
08:46to the quiet village
08:48of Balmaha.
08:51We were fairly confident
08:53that this would be
08:54a prime location
08:55for finding more
08:56because of accessibility
08:58and
08:59remote area,
09:01very, very limited
09:02police presence.
09:03Conditions here
09:08underwater
09:09are quite different
09:10to what we'd find
09:10at Rowerdennen,
09:12whereas Rowerdennen
09:12is clear,
09:14quite sandy bottom here,
09:16quite muddy
09:17and very, very poor visibility,
09:18which made the search
09:19of this area
09:20really quite difficult.
09:22It's often asked
09:23if we do
09:24underwater lights
09:25and everything else,
09:26which obviously
09:26we did have access to.
09:28It's effective like
09:29putting your
09:30main beam on
09:31in the fog.
09:32suddenly you can see
09:33absolutely nothing.
09:35So, unfortunately,
09:36you're down in the mud
09:37and you're working
09:38with your fingertips.
09:41Now, why a murderer
09:43would choose
09:43to dispose of a body
09:45in water
09:45instead of burying it
09:47on land
09:47may be
09:48due to the belief
09:50that they're less
09:51likely to be caught
09:52if the body parts
09:54or a body
09:54is dropped into water.
09:56The offenders
09:57think that the body
09:59is likely to disappear
10:00or be eaten
10:01by fish.
10:05As the days developed,
10:06it was a very
10:06fast-moving story.
10:08I think people
10:08were very, very concerned.
10:10There was a kind
10:11of fear
10:11and undercurrent.
10:13For police,
10:14the race was now on
10:16to capture
10:16an individual
10:17with clear
10:18sadistic tendencies.
10:19On the conditional
10:21body parts,
10:22we found
10:22that
10:23Balmaha,
10:24you could see
10:25quite clearly
10:26that handcuffs
10:27had been used.
10:28You're not used
10:29to seeing them
10:29having made
10:30such an impression
10:31on a human body,
10:33particularly
10:33to put handcuffs
10:35around someone's
10:37lower leg.
10:37one of the things
10:43that comes to mind
10:44immediately
10:44when I think
10:45about somebody
10:45who's restrained
10:46against their will
10:47with handcuffs
10:48is this need
10:49to dominate
10:50and control
10:50and that being
10:51part of the sexual
10:52turn-on for that person.
10:54It's very rare
10:54to see situations
10:56where somebody
10:56is handcuffing
10:58somebody because
10:58they're wanting
10:59to kill them
10:59for money
11:00or kill them
11:01for revenge.
11:02By now,
11:04detectives had
11:04finished searching
11:05the missing person
11:06reports
11:06and had a possible
11:08name for their victim.
11:11But it's not one
11:12they or the press
11:14were expecting.
11:31Detectives in Scotland
11:32are scouring
11:33missing persons lists
11:34trying to identify
11:36the murder victim
11:37whose dismembered
11:38body parts
11:38have been found
11:39in Loch Lomond.
11:41Now,
11:42they have a possible name.
11:45Barry Wallace.
11:46Last seen
11:47the day before
11:48the body parts
11:49were discovered.
11:49Barry Wallace was 18 years
12:09of age
12:09and he was going out
12:10for a Christmas night
12:11out with his friends
12:13and his colleagues
12:13from a local supermarket
12:15in Clamark.
12:16He'd had quite a lot
12:17to drink.
12:18He was last seen
12:19drunk,
12:20walking about
12:20Kilmarnock,
12:21trying to get a taxi.
12:23He didn't arrive home.
12:26He had no previous
12:29history of going missing.
12:32He had no previous
12:33history of any
12:35involvement in criminality.
12:37He was a good lad.
12:39His parents were concerned
12:40about where he was
12:41and when he hadn't
12:42come back late
12:44on a Sunday night
12:45and didn't report
12:46for work on the Monday
12:47morning,
12:47he was reported
12:48as a missing person.
12:50Barry Wood disappeared
12:51into thin air.
12:52There was no backstory.
12:54There was no family issues.
12:57Just a normal teenager
12:58enjoying a Christmas night
13:00out
13:00and with his future
13:01ahead of him.
13:02Fifty miles north
13:13of Kilmarnock,
13:14the police search
13:15of Loch Lomond
13:16continued.
13:22On land,
13:24you can easily
13:24mark out search areas
13:26because everything
13:27is visible.
13:30Underwater,
13:30it's very,
13:31very different
13:32because the people
13:33on the surface
13:34can't see what's
13:35going on underneath.
13:37You're looking
13:38at the distance
13:39out that the diver
13:40is from the bank
13:41and so just by
13:42taking measurements
13:43from the diver's
13:44lifeline as to how
13:45far out they are,
13:46how far along
13:47the search pattern
13:48they are,
13:48you can actually
13:49log on your
13:50underwater plan
13:51exactly what areas
13:52have been searched.
13:56You've also got
13:57to think if these
13:58limbs have been
14:00thrown into the
14:01water,
14:02how far out
14:03can they have
14:03been thrown,
14:04how far out
14:05are they likely
14:05to have drifted.
14:08Meanwhile,
14:09a pathologist
14:10examined the
14:11recovered limbs
14:12for clues
14:13about the murder
14:13weapon
14:14and what tools
14:15might have been
14:16used to dismember
14:17the body.
14:17It is actually
14:27very hard indeed
14:29to dismember a body
14:31cleanly.
14:33Sometimes there are
14:35marks associated
14:37with the cuts
14:37in the flesh
14:38that suggest
14:39it may be
14:40a serrated material.
14:41Sometimes a chainsaw
14:43is used,
14:43that leaves a different
14:44cutting impression.
14:45sometimes a grinding
14:46wheel,
14:47once again a
14:48different impression.
14:51You'd be looking
14:52at both the
14:52soft tissues,
14:54the muscles
14:54and the skin,
14:55but also any
14:56cuts through bone
14:57which are much
14:59better at reproducing
15:00the implement
15:01that was used.
15:02parts of the bones
15:05were transported
15:06by a road
15:07to specialists
15:07in England,
15:08but all they could
15:09say was
15:10they were cut
15:11with a fine-toothed
15:12saw.
15:13If we were hoping
15:13for maybe
15:14something more
15:14specific that we
15:16could focus
15:17a part of the
15:17investigation on,
15:18but that just
15:19came to a dead
15:20end, unfortunately.
15:25Officer suspected
15:26missing person
15:27Barry Wallace
15:28was the victim
15:29whose body parts
15:30they had found.
15:31but they still
15:32had no definite
15:33proof.
15:41Until the
15:4215th of December
15:43and the most
15:45grisly discovery
15:46yet.
15:52At a beachfront
15:53on Scotland's
15:54west coast,
15:55more than 50 miles
15:58from Loch Lomond.
16:01a lady had been
16:08walking her dog
16:09and her dog
16:10had noticed
16:12two bags
16:13and was pulling
16:14at the bags
16:14and when she went
16:16up she saw
16:17that there was
16:17a human head.
16:30To the best
16:31of my recollection
16:31it was just
16:32down near
16:33where the
16:34rocky area
16:34starts
16:35and where
16:36you see the
16:37bits of seaweed
16:38lying
16:38in that kind
16:39of area
16:40disposing of body
16:43at sea
16:43is tricky
16:44in many ways.
16:46In some places
16:47the tide's
16:47very weak
16:48or nonexistent.
16:49In other places
16:49they're incredibly
16:50strong.
16:51We can get flows
16:52in excess
16:53of 15 miles
16:54an hour
16:55in some places
16:55which is phenomenal.
16:58As the tide
16:59goes back
16:59and forth
17:00so a body
17:01might go
17:01at great speed
17:02in one direction
17:03but six
17:04and a half
17:05hours later
17:06it comes back
17:06again.
17:10We can only
17:11assume that
17:11it was the
17:12temperature
17:12of the
17:13sea water
17:14that
17:15preserved
17:16of the
17:17head.
17:20Being cold
17:21of course
17:21is really
17:22important for
17:23us.
17:23It preserves
17:24the tissues
17:25it preserves
17:26the cut marks
17:27it preserves
17:28evidence
17:28and that's
17:29what we want.
17:31So if it's
17:32been out of
17:33water
17:33in a warm
17:33environment
17:34for two
17:35or three
17:35days
17:35before being
17:36deposited
17:37that's going
17:37to have
17:38a significant
17:39effect
17:39but if
17:40on the other
17:41hand
17:41the individual
17:42has died
17:43and is put
17:43quickly into
17:44water
17:44preservation
17:45is going
17:45to be
17:46much
17:46much
17:46better.
17:51In this
17:52case
17:53the head
17:53was so
17:54well preserved
17:55it was even
17:56possible to
17:56confirm
17:57the victim's
17:57identity.
18:02Unfortunately
18:02it was
18:02body.
18:14It was a
18:14big step
18:15forward for
18:16investigators
18:16but the
18:18coastal nature
18:18of the crime
18:19scene put
18:20them under
18:20time pressure.
18:25You've got
18:25access by the
18:26public along
18:27the beach
18:27so you're
18:28going to have
18:28to coordinate
18:29it all off
18:29you're then
18:30dealing with
18:31the tides
18:32if the tide
18:33comes in
18:34it's going
18:34to bring
18:35in sea
18:35creatures
18:36that like
18:37fleshy parts
18:38of human
18:39bodies
18:39you're wanting
18:41to get this
18:41skull recovered
18:42as quickly as
18:43possible
18:43photographed
18:44bagged up
18:45and taken
18:46out of the
18:46way
18:46out of that
18:47environment
18:47before the
18:48sea and
18:49everything that
18:50lives in it
18:50comes back
18:51can.
18:59I knew I
19:00was going
19:00to have
19:01to go
19:01and see
19:02his parents
19:03they're two
19:05of the nicest
19:06people I've
19:06ever met
19:07one of the
19:11family liaison
19:11officers took
19:13Barry's dad
19:15to Glasgow
19:16City
19:16Mercery
19:17to identify
19:19him.
19:31I think
19:32people were
19:32horrified
19:33I think
19:34they were
19:34absolutely
19:35stunned
19:36shocked
19:36and horrified
19:37that an
19:39innocent boy
19:39and he
19:40was
19:40could end
19:42up in this
19:43situation.
19:45Barry Wallace
19:45had gone
19:46missing
19:46in the
19:47early hours
19:48of the
19:48Sunday
19:48morning
19:49and then
19:50the first
19:50body parts
19:51are found
19:51very early
19:52on the
19:53Monday
19:53morning.
19:55So whoever
19:56has done
19:56this
19:57has done
19:58it very
19:58quickly
19:59and could
20:01well have
20:01done something
20:02like that
20:02before.
20:05The offender
20:06would be
20:07someone who
20:08would be
20:09callous,
20:10have no
20:10empathy for
20:11anyone,
20:11would be
20:12extremely
20:12selfish and
20:13possibly impulsive.
20:16Now the
20:17police would
20:18then look to
20:19see who
20:20in the area
20:22had a
20:23criminal record
20:24especially for
20:24violence.
20:25the main
20:28trade that
20:28we were
20:28focused on
20:29was
20:29dismemberment.
20:30Initially a
20:31check was made
20:32in the police
20:32computer system
20:33and there was
20:34a very short
20:34list of one
20:35person who
20:36had an
20:37MO of
20:38carrying out
20:40dismemberment.
20:42We had a
20:43suspect right
20:43on our
20:43doorstep.
20:44In a
21:01chilly
21:02Scottish
21:02loch,
21:03police have
21:04found and
21:05identified the
21:05remains of
21:0718-year-old
21:08Barry Wallace.
21:12As
21:12soon as the
21:13search was
21:13made, they
21:14realized that
21:15it was
21:15actually a
21:16human body
21:17part.
21:18The police
21:19certainly
21:19was called
21:19like wildfire
21:20because that's
21:22a very
21:22uncommon
21:23occurrence.
21:25This was
21:26absolutely
21:26horrific.
21:27This was
21:27off the
21:28scale.
21:29Now they
21:30also have a
21:31suspect, a
21:32known local
21:33offender by
21:34the name of
21:35William Frederick
21:36Beggs, a
21:39man with a
21:39violent past.
21:43Beggs had
21:50previously stood
21:52trial for an
21:53incident in
21:54Kilmarnock eight
21:55years earlier in
21:561991 where he
21:57had invited a
21:58gentleman back to
21:59his home.
22:00They'd met in a
22:01gay bar in
22:02Glasgow and this
22:04person had been
22:05given a drink that
22:07was drugged and he
22:09fell unconscious and
22:10woke up to find
22:12Beggs attacking him
22:13with a knife and
22:14trying to cut him
22:16up or slash him.
22:19This particular
22:20individual jumped
22:21out a window to
22:22escape Beggs and
22:23he was found by a
22:24local resident taking
22:25to hospital.
22:27Beggs was
22:27arrested.
22:31Beggs was
22:32sentenced to six
22:33years for the
22:34attack and there
22:35was more.
22:37He had also
22:37previously been
22:38imprisoned for the
22:39murder of a 28-year-old
22:41man in 1987 but the
22:43conviction was
22:44quashed on appeal.
22:47They'd led the
22:48trial of murder with
22:49instances that Beggs
22:51had carried out
22:51woundings of other
22:52men and it was
22:54deemed that because
22:55they had led that
22:56it was unfair and
22:58might have tainted
22:58the jury's opinion
23:00of him as far as
23:02the murder was
23:02concerned and the
23:03appeal was upheld
23:04and he was
23:04released.
23:07Beggs' lawyers
23:08succeeded in their
23:09appeal.
23:11Under English law
23:12at the time he
23:13couldn't be retried
23:14for the same crime
23:15so he was a free
23:17man.
23:19Beggs started a
23:20new life moving
23:22north to Scotland.
23:24We knew that he had
23:25been convicted of a
23:26murder on Teesside.
23:27We knew that he had
23:28got off with that
23:29murder on a
23:30technicality.
23:31But although the
23:32conviction was
23:33overturned the
23:34details of that
23:35murder for which
23:35Beggs was the only
23:36suspect were
23:37worryingly similar to
23:38the crime police
23:39were now
23:40investigating.
23:41There had been
23:42attempts to
23:42dismember the
23:44loons.
23:47Dismembering a
23:47body is extremely
23:48a rare thing to
23:50happen after someone
23:50has killed someone
23:51and in that
23:52particular case there
23:53was evidence that
23:55he tried to
23:56dismember the body
23:56and this case went
23:59to court and due
24:01to a miscarriage of
24:03the court proceedings
24:04he successfully
24:05appealed and was
24:07out of prison after
24:08three years.
24:11The officers who
24:12worked in
24:12Kilmarnock were
24:13aware of his
24:14previous convictions
24:16and they were
24:18keeping an eye out
24:19on him.
24:21Police didn't
24:22publicly name Beggs
24:23as a person of
24:24interest but it
24:26wasn't long before
24:27the media came to
24:28its own conclusions.
24:29It actually
24:30exploded as far as
24:32press-wise went
24:34because the press
24:34too had started to
24:35find out about
24:36Beggs.
24:39The media was
24:40asked the question
24:40you've got somebody
24:41on your doorstep
24:42who's committed a
24:43similar crime
24:44why aren't you
24:45arresting them?
24:48The press's
24:49freedom to
24:49speculate risked
24:51jeopardising the
24:52entire police
24:52investigation and
24:54enabling Barry
24:55Wallace's murderer
24:56to evade justice
24:58completely.
25:00Because he was
25:01only a suspect
25:02they just printed
25:03what they wanted
25:04to.
25:06It was a really
25:07difficult,
25:09challenging time
25:10for the family
25:12because there were
25:13things put in the
25:14papers like
25:16Beggs had Barry's
25:19head in his
25:19fridge.
25:21They were also
25:21printing things about
25:23Beggs' previous
25:24incidents, about his
25:25previous convictions,
25:26about his lifestyle.
25:27trial.
25:29All that does is
25:30prejudice a future
25:32trial because an
25:33individual's supposed
25:34to have a fair
25:36trial without any
25:38background or
25:38previous convictions
25:39being brought into
25:40public knowledge.
25:40The case was
25:46unsettling an entire
25:47community, so police
25:49wasted no time in
25:50putting together a
25:51timeline which might
25:53offer more clues.
25:56We already had a
25:58sequence of events in
25:59terms of Barry's last
26:00movements.
26:01We then had to try and
26:03do the same thing with
26:04Beggs.
26:05We realised that
26:08same morning that
26:09Barry had been last
26:10seen in the town
26:11centre, Beggs would
26:13roughly be approaching
26:14Kilmarnock and he
26:15would come in that
26:16same way that Barry
26:17was walking and it
26:18would be around the
26:19same time.
26:20This is how they have
26:21actually been able to
26:22meet up.
26:25Tracing prime suspect
26:26Beggs' movements,
26:28hour by hour, day by
26:30day, police made
26:32another key discovery.
26:35On December 7th, Beggs
26:45took a ferry from
26:46Troon on Scotland's
26:48west coast over to
26:49Northern Ireland.
26:51We believe that when
26:53he was taking the
26:53sea cat from Troon to
26:55Ireland to see his
26:56parents, that that was
26:58when he probably threw
26:59Barry's head off the
27:02side of the ferry.
27:02Suspect Beggs may have
27:06thought disposing of the
27:08head from a moving
27:09vessel would make it
27:10less likely to be found.
27:12He was wrong.
27:13Does it make a difference
27:17that the head was dropped
27:18from a height from a ferry
27:20rather than placed in much
27:22lower?
27:23It makes no difference at
27:24all to the path of that
27:26head and it would still
27:27wash up on that beach.
27:28And we can demonstrate that
27:30here by taking an object,
27:32placing it in gently to the
27:34surface of the ocean.
27:36And it goes along with the
27:37flow at a fairly steady rate
27:39and after 30 seconds it
27:41reaches a point further
27:42down there.
27:43We can then repeat that,
27:45but this time rather than
27:46placing it in carefully,
27:47we're going to drop it
27:48from height.
27:48So we're dropping it from
27:49the deck, say, of a ferry.
27:52It goes into the water,
27:53makes a splash, but
27:54actually very quickly it
27:55finds its level in the sea
27:57and it goes with exactly
27:59the same currents as it
28:00would have done had been
28:01put in the ocean at the
28:03surface.
28:03Police widened their
28:07investigation from the
28:08coast to the suspect's
28:09apartment in Kilmarnock.
28:12We knew that if the
28:15murder had taken place in
28:17that location, in his
28:18home, then somewhere there
28:21had to be evidence and
28:23traces of Barry Wallace in
28:25that flat.
28:33A warrant was promptly
28:37issued for detectives to
28:39gain access, but the
28:41press were already there.
28:45Now, this was a high
28:47profile case, so when the
28:48police went and raided the
28:49house, journalists knew
28:51about it, a lot of the
28:52journalists were already
28:52there when the police
28:54arrived.
28:54When we got there, the
28:58flat was empty, Beggs was
29:01not in.
29:02We assumed he was at his
29:04work, but we didn't know
29:05at that time where he
29:06worked.
29:07So at that point, the
29:09house was sealed and the
29:10search started to take
29:11place.
29:13And the media's
29:14fascination with the case
29:15was about to cause a
29:17major problem.
29:19There was a radio
29:19broadcast, a suspect, in
29:22the case of Barry
29:23Wallace.
29:23His house had been
29:24invaded in Kilmarnock.
29:26Beggs is at work.
29:27He hears this news
29:28broadcast, realising it
29:30about him, that he fled,
29:32that he'd gone on the
29:33run.
29:34That was very frustrating
29:35for us.
29:36Very frustrating.
29:46But on the 28th of
29:48December, wanted man Beggs
29:50made another unexpected
29:51move, handing himself in
29:54to Dutch police.
29:55And he did so with one of
29:57the top extradition lawyers
29:58in Amsterdam.
30:00His lawyer made it clear
30:01that he was pleading that
30:02he was innocent and that
30:03he was not wanting to be
30:04extradited.
30:06The decision by Beggs to
30:07hand himself out to the
30:08Dutch police created a
30:10major problem for the
30:11authorities.
30:12The Netherlands was one of
30:13the most difficult countries
30:15to be extradited from, and
30:17his plan was that we would
30:18never get him back.
30:19He is somebody who has
30:22studied the legal system, is
30:24committed to using it as
30:26much as possible to his
30:27advantage.
30:28And he's been able to do
30:29that in the past, where one
30:31of his convictions was
30:32overturned on appeal.
30:34This time, though, Begg's
30:36scheme backfired.
30:37Back in those days, he only
30:41had 110 days between when
30:44somebody was detained or
30:46arrested before trial started.
30:48So the timescales were really,
30:50really tight.
30:51But because he was fighting
30:54extradition, it allowed the
30:55inquiry team to carry out
30:57further, more exhaustive
30:59investigations.
31:00Forensic officers returned to
31:08the wanted man's home and
31:09spent several weeks gathering
31:11more evidence.
31:13The first significant findings
31:15were items of blood.
31:18Those blood samples were
31:19examined, and they were then
31:21found to be Barry Wallace's
31:22blood.
31:22Detectives hoped Barry's
31:30remains would help provide a
31:32timeline for his murder.
31:34But the dumping of the body in
31:36water made this challenging.
31:43If a body's been recovered on
31:45land, it's a lot easier to
31:48identify the time of death
31:51underwater, it does make it
31:53more difficult, purely because
31:55of the way water reacts with
31:56the flesh of the body.
31:58Often with bodies that are
32:00recovered from the water, the
32:02only real idea of how long the
32:04body's been there is because
32:05someone's seen the body go
32:07into the water.
32:11Police investigating the
32:12suspect's past tried to
32:14establish what might have
32:16motivated him to commit such
32:17disturbing crimes.
32:19So what we know about William
32:21Beggs is an intelligent man.
32:23He has a degree.
32:25William Beggs was a very
32:27respectable family in Northern
32:28Ireland.
32:29Both his mother and father were
32:31pillars of the community.
32:32God-fearing, church-going
32:33people.
32:35Beggs had been brought up in that
32:36environment.
32:38But being raised in a community
32:40where being gay was stigmatized,
32:42suspected killer Beggs went to
32:44extreme lengths to conceal his own
32:47homosexuality.
32:49It would be incredibly confusing
32:50to have this religious
32:52indoctrination, which is telling
32:54you that your natural preferences,
32:56your natural interest are sins
32:58and can result in some eternal
33:01damnation or something like that.
33:03As a person grows up, it's not
33:05uncommon for that self-hatred and
33:08that anger and confusion to begin
33:10to be directed outward.
33:12In the case of Wanted Man Beggs,
33:15this took the form of attacks on
33:17men, which started at a young age.
33:21The first record of Beggs
33:22committing violence was when he
33:26knifed a teenager on a camping
33:28trip when he was a young teenager
33:31himself.
33:32There seemed to be the beginnings of
33:34what we could identify as a pattern
33:37in his behavior.
33:40In a whole history of cutting
33:41people in youth hostels,
33:43he was banned from youth hostels
33:45in the Balmaha area for that
33:46very practice.
33:49Detectives also appealed to the
33:50gay community for more information
33:52and got an immediate response.
33:55People in that community started
33:57coming forward to speak with us
33:59because a lot of them were
34:00frightened of him.
34:01So this realization that
34:02this is a really dangerous man,
34:04this was a fiend, he was a monster.
34:07We needed to get them behind bars
34:09for everyone's safety.
34:19Police focused their efforts on
34:21bringing suspect Beggs back
34:23from Amsterdam to Scotland.
34:25We had to present a case that
34:29there was a sufficiency of evidence
34:31for a trial to be held and for a
34:34conviction to be secured,
34:35otherwise we would not be able to
34:38exit the deal.
34:46Then came news of a morbid
34:48breakthrough.
34:49So by around the 8th of January,
34:52Barry's torso had been found
34:54a mile and a half away from
34:56Balmaha, where his other body
34:58parts had been.
35:04The torso would have been dumped
35:06in that location.
35:07You can drive quite closely to it,
35:10in which case he could have then
35:11just carried it to the water's edge
35:13and put it into the water.
35:21Police had now recovered most of the
35:23victim's body.
35:25The fact that the parts of the body
35:28were spread over four different locations,
35:30it gives you an idea that the offender
35:32was clearly trying to spread the body
35:35parts around to make it harder to find.
35:38And he's gone to a lot of trouble
35:40to visit these places,
35:42to dispose of them.
35:48He took the torso
35:50to the mortuary,
35:52where he was given
35:54a post-mortem examination.
35:59Clearly, deterioration
36:00would have progressed.
36:01There's no doubt at all.
36:02And the torso containing the bowel
36:04is more prone to decomposition.
36:06But there is still plenty to see.
36:11Police had strong suspicions
36:13that Beggs could have drugged his victim.
36:17The torso is likely
36:20to give the best samples.
36:22Samples of blood remaining
36:23within the heart,
36:25remaining within the major blood vessels,
36:27maybe some urine present
36:29within the bladder
36:30or within the kidneys.
36:31These can then be analysed
36:33for any drug residues.
36:34But the post-mortem failed
36:38to find drugs in the victim's system,
36:40despite a needle mark on an arm.
36:43The dismemberment also made it impossible
36:45to prove a cause of death.
36:49Things can be hidden,
36:51covered up,
36:52disturbed.
36:53The presumption is
36:55that something violent has happened.
36:57But the truth also is
36:59that we don't always know for certain.
37:02And remember,
37:03in a court of law,
37:04we have to be certain
37:05beyond reasonable doubt
37:07rather than just have a good guess.
37:13This was a serious blow
37:15to the extradition case.
37:17But what the pathologist
37:18uncovered next
37:19would shock the entire team.
37:22The dismembered body
37:36of 18-year-old Barry Wallace
37:38found in Loch Lomond
37:40has now undergone a post-mortem.
37:43It revealed new
37:44and horrifying details.
37:47We realised there was evidence
37:48of sexual assault.
37:53The pathologist
37:54can't actually talk about consent.
37:57But when we look
37:58at this type of injuries,
37:59you can say
38:00the injuries were so severe
38:02that it's highly unlikely
38:04in someone
38:05without a known masochistic tendency
38:09to be prepared
38:10to accept
38:11that degree of violence.
38:12Add that to the presence
38:14of handcuffs.
38:15Add that to the presence
38:16of other injuries.
38:17And it really points
38:19very strongly
38:20to a very violent
38:21sexual assault
38:23as a component
38:24of a violent
38:25overall assault.
38:30William Beggs was gay
38:31and the assumption
38:33is that perhaps
38:35his latest victim
38:36may be homosexual.
38:38But in fact,
38:38he wasn't.
38:39Barry Wallace
38:40was a heterosexual.
38:42Beggs had admitted
38:43he preferred
38:44to have the company
38:48of what he regarded
38:50as straight men
38:51and it appeared
38:53that his enjoyment
38:54came from forceful
38:56homosexual activity
38:57or rape
38:58of his victim.
39:00The fact that he chooses
39:05to go out
39:07and essentially troll
39:08for men
39:10who are not gay
39:11I think does speak
39:12to this anger
39:13and this sadism
39:14and this pleasure
39:16he might get
39:17in not only
39:18taking advantage
39:19of young men
39:20who might be intoxicated
39:22but young men
39:23who would find
39:24being sexually assaulted
39:25by a man
39:26particularly horrifying.
39:28At that point
39:30we had to make
39:31Barry's parents aware
39:33and I'd always told them
39:35I would speak to them
39:36I'd always told them
39:37I would tell the truth
39:38and I don't think
39:40I had a more difficult
39:41conversation
39:42in my entire
39:43police career.
39:53After months
39:54of investigating
39:54the extradition case
39:56against Wanted Man
39:57Beggs
39:58was granted
39:59but he appealed
40:00and things ground
40:02to a halt
40:03yet again.
40:05They appealed
40:06on the basis
40:07that due
40:08to the press coverage
40:09he could not receive
40:11a fair trial
40:11in Scotland.
40:13If Beggs
40:15won that appeal
40:16the police's
40:17prime suspect
40:18would swerve
40:19justice altogether.
40:20eventually they ruled
40:27that Beggs
40:28could be sent
40:29back to Scotland
40:30or extradited
40:31back to Scotland
40:31and he was
40:32absolutely shocked.
40:33During the trial
40:46at Edinburgh High Court
40:47a picture emerged
40:49of what happened
40:50to victim
40:50Barry Wallace
40:51in the final hours
40:53of his life.
40:54I genuinely believe
40:56what happened
40:57was that Beggs
40:58was coming
40:59into Kilmarnock
41:00Barry Wallace
41:00was walking home
41:01Beggs has offered
41:04him a lift
41:04Barry was drunk
41:05and they've gone
41:07to Beggs' flat
41:07Beggs has given
41:09him something
41:09and that he's
41:10passed out.
41:12When Barry's
41:12been waking up
41:13he is being
41:14sexually assaulted
41:16and during that time
41:17as well
41:18he had been
41:18handcuffed
41:19and he'd been
41:20struggling so hard
41:21that he actually
41:22scraped the bones
41:23in his wrist.
41:26It was described
41:27by a very senior
41:28police casualty
41:29surgeon
41:29as the worst
41:30handcuff injury
41:31he had ever
41:31witnessed.
41:34And the prosecution
41:35called one witness
41:37who revealed
41:38a chilling detail
41:39of the timeline.
41:41On the Sunday
41:42Beggs made a phone
41:44call
41:44to one of his
41:46close friends
41:47and said
41:48that he'd
41:49pick up
41:49a young
41:51sweet guy
41:52the night before.
41:54Now
41:54when you look
41:55at the timeline
41:56it's more than
41:58likely that
41:58that's when
41:59he was
41:59at or near
42:01to
42:02Loch Lomond
42:03either going
42:04to deposit
42:05Barry's remains
42:07or coming back
42:08from.
42:08So it's chilling.
42:11Then more
42:12forensic evidence
42:13emerged
42:14tying Beggs
42:15to the crime.
42:17When it was
42:18reported
42:18that Beggs
42:19had fled the country
42:20he drove down
42:21to Luton Airport
42:21where his car
42:23was eventually
42:23discovered.
42:24His car
42:25revealed blood
42:26as well.
42:27Barry's blood.
42:32But the defence
42:33team claimed
42:34the victim
42:34had consented
42:35to sex
42:36and that the death
42:37was the consequence
42:38of a sex game
42:39gone wrong
42:40between them.
42:43One of the arguments
42:44of the defence
42:45had been
42:46that this
42:47wasn't a murder
42:47that it was
42:49a culpable homicide
42:50or manslaughter
42:51as known
42:51in other countries
42:52and that of course
42:54would have meant
42:55a lesser sentence
42:56and there was a bit
42:57of a dramatic moment
42:58when the jury
42:59came back
43:00to ask for some
43:01guidance from the judge
43:02on the difference
43:03between what's
43:04culpable homicide
43:05and murder
43:06and that led us
43:07to believe
43:08that there might be
43:09a quitting
43:10of murder.
43:11The jury
43:13were given
43:14clarification
43:15and the detail
43:16of the victim's
43:17injuries
43:17was read out.
43:19Then the jury
43:19of 15 men
43:21and women
43:21retired
43:22to make their
43:22decision.
43:25There was massive
43:27pressure to get
43:27a conviction
43:28first and foremost
43:29for Barry's mum
43:30and dad
43:30and his brother
43:31because they
43:32deserved that.
43:33We also wanted
43:34a conviction
43:35to prevent
43:36this from
43:37ever happening
43:38again.
43:41After a trial
43:46lasting nearly
43:47three weeks
43:48William Frederick
43:50Beggs
43:50was found
43:51guilty
43:52of the murder
43:53of Barry Wallace.
43:56He was sentenced
43:57to life imprisonment
43:58but the
43:59recommendation
44:01for
44:02minimal custodial
44:04was 20 years.
44:07Under Scottish law
44:08it meant Beggs
44:10wouldn't even
44:11be considered
44:11for parole
44:12for two full
44:13decades.
44:15My recollection
44:16that there wasn't
44:17a lot of reaction
44:18from Beggs
44:19whether he was
44:21resigned to
44:21the outcome.
44:23But even with
44:25the killer
44:25behind bars
44:26some questions
44:28still remained.
44:30I'm a firm believer
44:31that there are
44:31other victims.
44:33The initial
44:34search of the house
44:35took several days.
44:36there were
44:38some carpets
44:39underlay
44:39and then
44:40floorboards.
44:42What I started
44:43to find was
44:43stains
44:44of blood
44:45human blood
44:46male human blood
44:47which was not
44:48identified
44:48and still
44:49have not
44:50been identified.
44:50they found
44:54blood samples
44:55of 17 other
44:56males
44:56which suggests
44:58that other
44:59men have been
45:00in that flat
45:00other young men
45:01and have been
45:02attacked
45:02and possibly
45:03even murdered.
45:05Who else has
45:06been in that
45:07property
45:07that has lost
45:09blood
45:09to that extent?
45:10not only
45:14would it
45:15be difficult
45:15for a male
45:16to come forward
45:17with sexual
45:18violence
45:18there's the
45:18whole issue
45:19of if this
45:20person is
45:21straight
45:22and they're
45:23raped by a
45:23gay man.
45:24I think that
45:25it is
45:26unfortunately
45:27not uncommon
45:27for that person
45:28to wonder
45:29why did this
45:29person choose
45:30me?
45:31What does it
45:31save up my
45:32own sexuality?
45:33And then he's
45:34picking men
45:34who are much
45:35less likely
45:35to come forward
45:36so he is
45:37stacking the deck
45:38as much as
45:39possible in his
45:39favor.
45:40The impact
45:43this guy has
45:44had on the
45:45Wallace family
45:45is beyond
45:47belief
45:47but not just
45:49the Wallace
45:50family
45:50other families
45:51in this country
45:53and in other
45:54countries
45:55has been
45:57in my opinion
45:57a serial
45:58predator.
46:02With the
46:03family
46:03while everyone
46:05was pleased
46:06that there was
46:07a conviction
46:07it didn't
46:09alter
46:09what they
46:10had gone
46:10through
46:11it didn't
46:12alter
46:12what had
46:13happened
46:13to Barry
46:13and I think
46:17they have
46:18shown
46:18tremendous
46:19courage
46:19in the way
46:20that they
46:20have
46:21continued
46:22their lives
46:22since then
46:23since then
46:23since then
46:23they
46:25had
46:25to be
46:26in the way
46:27and
46:27they
46:28have
46:29to be
46:30a
46:31who
46:32and
46:32they
46:33have
46:33to be
46:33in the way
46:35and they
46:37to be
46:37Transcription by CastingWords
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